Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20 – New York Giants 3
Overview: I am always wary of singling out one individual for a loss. Football is the consumate team sport and in any given defeat, a number of players can usually be held to task. However, as I sat around with fellow Giant fans after the game in a local bar trying to figure out what is wrong with the offense, the only player I thought who played poorly on that unit against Tampa Bay was Danny Kanell. Danny was terrible. And after handing the Bucs a 10-0 first quarter lead, it became apparent that Bucs had little faith in Kanell’s ability either as they loaded up against the run and dared Danny to beat them with the pass. Kanell could not accept the challenge and make Tampa Bay pay for this strategy. And that folks is the story of the game.
The Giants are 2-3 and face an uphill fight in their effort to repeat as division champions. Let’s not just review the Bucs-Giants game here. Let’s take a long, hard look at where the Giants are as a team. It’s time to take off the rose-colored glasses and attempt to look at this team as an outsider might.
Quarterbacks: Danny Kanell (10-27 for 83 yards, 0 touchdowns, 3 interceptions) lost the game. Period. He gave the Buccaneers a 10-0 lead in the first quarter with two bad interceptions. On his first pick, the third offensive play of the game, he threw behind HB Tiki Barber and right to a Bucs’ cornerback who returned the pick for a touchdown. On the very next drive, he misread the Bucs’ defense on a zone blitz and threw right to the dropping defensive end. That interception set up Tampa Bay’s first field goal. But as bad as those plays were, let’s not forget the fact that Danny had trouble hitting any target throughout the game. On deep throws, his passes were tossed out-of-bounds. He was high most of the afternoon, and when he wasn’t, he was throwing low, behind, or too far in front of his receivers. In short, Kanell’s accuracy was atrocious. It looked to me as his targets were open, he just couldn’t deliver the ball. Tampa knew this an basically loaded up against the run by bringing their safeties close to the line of scrimmage. Kanell could not make the Bucs pay for this lack of respect. I also wonder if Kanell is having more trouble reading defenses than many of us realize. It seems to me that he’s looking to dump the ball off to the running backs too soon, despite having adequate protection. Indeed, he’s looking so quickly to the running backs at times that he’s leading defenders right to the play.
Let’s look at the big picture. Can Danny Kanell eventually lead the Giants to a Superbowl? That’s a tough question. First, let’s keep things in perspective. Danny Kanell has started only 16 games in his career. In other words, in effect, he has just completed his “first season” of football. It usually takes a quarterback a couple of years at least to become adept passers technique-wise and more than novices at reading defenses. To expect faster development is simply not realistic. What are Kanell’s assets? He’s a smart, tough quarterback with decent size and a good feel for the game. He doesn’t get rattled easily and that is a tremendous asset for a quarterback. He also has a quick release and seems to be ahead of the curve in making quick decisions. His limitations are that he doesn’t have great arm strength, he isn’t mobile, and his accuracy is very inconsistent at this point in his career. There are some in the NFL who feel that you can’t win consistently in today’s NFL without a mobile quarterback. Is this true? That’s a question that won’t be settled here. Can Kanell improve his accuracy? Fassel and Kanell would argue so. But to be truly effective, Kanell has to improve his accuracy to the point that it is the strength of his game. In other words, his accuracy, “headiness,” and decision-making ability have to overcome his limited arm strength and mobility. If he can’t, then he will never be more than an average quarterback.
It is virtually impossible to win the big game in the NFL without an elite quarterback. Regardless of what happens with the Giants’ win-loss record from here on out, the key to the Giants’ future success will be the quarterback position. Watch Kanell. Observe if his accuracy is improving and doing so on a consistent basis. If it doesn’t, then it is time to consider Mike Cherry, a draft pick, or a free agent in 1999. You can’t win the big one with an average-armed quarterback who has little mobility and inconsistent accuracy.
Wide Receivers: How can you adequately evaluate the performance of the receivers when your quarterback can’t get them the ball? Amani Toomer (1 catch for 10 yards) made a fantastic catch in a key situation on a high throw from Kanell by outleaping the defender and coming down with the ball despite a hard fall. Ike Hilliard (1 catch for 12 yards) also made an unbelievable play by holding onto the ball despite being nearly beheaded on a short pass. Chris Calloway (2 for 23 yards) was his normal steady self, but was lucky that a defensive holding penalty was called on a play where he fumbled the ball after a catch. I saw Joe Jurevicius (no catches) in motion on the first drive on a play where he was supposed to clear out a zone for Gary Brown, but I didn’t see him on the playing field after that. Strange. David Patten (no catches) has made little impact as a receiver this season after an impressive training camp and preseason.
I firmly believe that the Giants have the talent they need at wide receiver. Ike Hilliard is a super-quick play-maker. He’s not really a deep threat, but he can do damage after the catch and the Giants need to do a better job of getting him the ball in a position where he can run with it. Amani Toomer looks like a different receiver this year. I still worry some about mental errors in terms of route running, but he’s playing with a lot of confidence. David Patten has good hands, has great speed, and seems to really have bulked up in the offseason. He will be a factor. Rookies Joe Jurevicius and Bryan Alford have bright futures. Jurevicius has great hands and his size-speed combination is a nightmare package to defend. Alford reminds me of a young Mike Sherrard. One of the problems with the Giants on offense right now is that when Chris Calloway and Ike Hilliard are on the field at the same time as the only receivers, the Giants do not scare defenses vertically. I love Calloway, he’s a super-consistent, dependable guy who wins games with his play. But he can’t get deep. The safeties rarely keep an extra eye on him. Obviously, Hilliard has to start. We would strongly consider starting to have the young receivers cut into Calloway’s playing time — especially as the Giants lose more games.
Tight Ends: Invisible once again in the passing game (no catches). Is it the talent or the unwillingness on the part of Kanell or Fassel to utilize the tight ends? What ever the reason, the Giants terribly limit themselves by not threatening defenses with the tight end. Even if they did use Howard Cross and Al Pupunu, they really aren’t the type of guys who can stretch the field down the middle. The linebackers don’t have to worry about a mobile quarterback. The safeties don’t have to worry about the deep passes to the wide receivers with Calloway and Hilliard on the field. The safeties and linebackers both don’t have to worry about the tight end. Thus the safeties and linebackers can cheat up and defend the halfback and fullback. Is it any wonder why the Giants are having a hard time running the ball? The Giants’ quarterback, be it Kanell or someone else, needs a tight end who can stretch defenses or at the very least serve as a security blanket. The Giants’ current corps of tight ends do neither.
Halfbacks/Fullbacks: I felt Gary Brown (17 carries for 67 yards, nearly a 4.0 yard per carry average) ran well. He’s a power running back with quick feet. No, he’s not going to break the long run on a regular basis, but he can wear down a defense and occasionally break the 20-25 yard run. That’s no worse than OJ Anderson or Rodney Hampton. Moreover, he’s just now starting to get into sync with the line. If the Giants were able to get the opposing defenses to stop crowding the line of scrimmage, Brown might be even more affective. Tiki Barber (2 carries for minus two yards, 3 catches for 10 yards), on the other hand, is in a very serious slump. He seems to be thinking too much, pressing too hard, and losing his confidence. He’s a third down back with a case of the dropsies. He’s lost his elusiveness and he can’t break a tackle. Is it merely a sophomore slump? Is he playing too heavy? Or is he a bust? Time will tell. Tyrone Wheatley was not activated for the game. Regardless of what you think about him, everyone should recognize that he has no future in New York. FB Charles Way (1 carry for zero yards, 2 catches for 25 yards) has not been a factor offensively this year with the ball in his hands.
I like the Giants fullbacks in Way and Greg Comella. What the Giants desperately need is an impact halfback. The kind of running back who scares defenses with his ability; the kind of running back that keeps defensive coordinators up at night. These kind of running backs often make their offensive lines look better than they really are…they find that hole and explode through, no matter how small. They find the cutback lane and burn overaggressive defenses. They break a tackle or make a great move that leads to a long touchdown run. The Giants do not have this type of back on their roster.
Offensive Line: The line played fairly well against a very good defensive front seven. In the running game, it was SS John Lynch (13 tackles) who kept killing the Giants. Why? Because he wasn’t worried about the passing game. LG Greg Bishop did a commendable job on DT Warren Sapp. LT Roman Oben continues make dumb false start penalties…he must have caught what Scott Gragg had last year. He also was flagged for a holding penalty that was nullified by a Bucs’ penalty. Jerry Reynolds also did an admirable job filling in for RG Ron Stone. Derek Engler continued to sub some for Lance Scott at center. I felt that Kanell had decent time against a very aggressive pass rush team. The Giants didn’t break many long runs, but Brown was consistently able to pick up positive yardage and he did hit a few +10 yarders.
Do the Giants have the horses on the front wall? I still like LT Roman Oben and RG Ron Stone. Both are having down years compared to last year, but both have the tools and have proven that they can do it. Greg Bishop is actually playing fairly well. It would be nice to have another road grader inside at that position, but the Giants can win with Bishop at guard if he continues his steady play. Scott Gragg is still up and down too much. But he’s not going anywhere given his new contract. Hopefully, he will end up being no worse than a Doug Riesenberg. I still wonder about Lance Scott. I don’t see him getting much of a push inside. He’s not killing the Giants, but he’s not really making many key blocks either.
Offensive Summary: The Giants need help at halfback and tight end. They also may still need a starting quarterback. A road-grading guard or center would help immeasurably. That’s a lot of needs to fill for one offseason. Also keep in mind that rookies take time to develop, especially quarterbacks and offensive linemen.
Defensive Line: The defensive line played a fairly strong game. It’s nearly impossible to fault the defense for the loss, but the defensive line did wilt somewhat late in game after the Giants had cut the lead to 10-3. Tampa, using Warrick Dunn, Mike Alstott, and Lorenzo Neal was able to control the clock and put the game away with a very important field goal drive. But at that point in the game, the defense was nearly exhausted due to the heat and the fact that they were on the field nearly the entire game. DE Mike Strahan (7 tackles) picked up another sack and was molested by RT Jason Odoms much of the day. DT Christian Peter (4 tackles) played decently again subbing for Robert Harris. His biggest problem is staying onsides. Keith Hamilton (3 tackles, 1 sack) was a disruptive inside and DE Chad Bratzke (7 tackles) played a nice game against a tough tackle in Paul Gruber. Bernard Holsey (3 tackles) flashed some in his limited action — we’d like to see him on the field more. Cedric Jones defenses an outside run nicely and played a lot more than he usually does. Interestingly, the Giants often had him at RDE and Bratzke at LDE. Defensive Coordinator John Fox also had Bratzke rushing once from an upright position.
The Giants look set on the defensive line for many years if they can re-sign a few guys. Strahan will be a free agent after the 1999 season, but re-signing him will be a priority. Bratzke is playing well and Cedric Jones seems to be coming on. Re-signing Bratzke may be tough. Hamilton and Harris are two of the better defensive tackle tandems in the game and are still relatively young. Holsey, Jones, and Peter give the Giants impressive depth and the coaching staff obviously sees something in rookie DT George Williams.
Linebackers: Good game for the linebackers. Warrick Dunn did make them at times look bad in the tackling department, but Dunn does that to most teams. Ryan Phillips bit on a play-fake and was beaten in coverage on one play. He was eventually pulled for Marcus Buckley (7 tackles) who played his best game as Giant. Buckley not only made a great play on his interception of a deflected pass, but he was generally around the ball most of the day. MLB Corey Widmer (11 tackles) had an excellent game defending the run. He was very forceful filling the hole. He also defensed a pass near the goalline. Even Jessie Armstead (10 tackles) looked quicker than he has. He made some tackles and looked good on a blitz. The only thing that bothered me about the linebackers/defensive scheme is that the Bucs always seemed to throw into the blitz. By that we mean that as soon as one of the outside linebackers blitzed, the Bucs always seemed to be ready for it and passed to the fullback in the vacated area…too many times for it to be a coincidence.
The Giants are obviously set on the weakside, especially if they can re-sign restricted free agent Scott Galyon. Inside, I would like to keep Widmer, but Pete Monty and Doug Colman are no slouches. The strongside is the question mark, but Buckley and Phillips haven’t really hurt the Giants and are both getting better. The Giants may have too many offensive needs regardless.
Defensive Backs: Trent Dilfer was so bad that it is tough to accurately judge these guys. However, give the Giants a little credit. They did limit Tampa Bay to 85 passing yards. CB Conrad Hamilton almost came up with two picks by playing an aggressive game. Indeed, one of his almost picks would have gone for a touchdown. Carlton Gray was beaten on a shallow crossing pattern where the quarterback had far too much time to throw, but he also made a great play with his sack and forced fumble on Dilfer — a play that set up the Giants’ defense on the Bucs’ 11-yard line. FS Tito Wooten also looked real good on his inside blitz and sack. CB Phillippi Sparks was quiet and that’s always a good sign for a cornerback. Percy Ellsworth was quiet too. He’s still too passive in the tackling department however. Garnes (10 tackles) played the run fairly well, but did look silly trying to tackle Alstott on one play. It’s obvious that his foot is bothering him.
If Jason Sehorn comes back near 100%, the Giants are in good shape. This is especially true if they can hold onto Carlton Gray and/or Sparks’ level of play remains steady. Re-signing Conrad Hamilton will be important too. Shaun Williams will be a starter at one safety spot next year. Sam Garnes, Tito Wooten, and Percy Ellsworth (if they can re-sign him) will fight it out for the other spot. This secondary is very good once everyone is healthy.
Special Teams: Aside from the kickers and returners, the Giants’ special teams stink. Special Teams Coach Larry MacDuff is not getting the job done. Of course you need good special teams players, but much of special teams is about attitude and coaching. How bad is it? The Giants tried to set up the return on almost every punt, but it seemed as both Tampa Bay gunners were unblocked all day. It’s time to get Percy off the specials because he is noticeably not getting the job done. More evidence? If Daluiso doesn’t force a touchback, the Giants inevitably give up a big return. Really, it’s a joke. I don’t know why any returner in their right mind would down a Daluiso kick in the endzone, no matter how deep it was. I also don’t like having Maynard kicking down the middle of the field to dangerous returners. The Giants did this against Deion Sanders and got burned. They are lucky Jacquez Green didn’t do it to them in Tampa. Maynard punted decently, but screwed up on the hold for the first field goal attempt (I still thought Daluiso could have kicked the ball however). Amani Toomer didn’t have a chance. For one, Tampa’s punter got great hangtime and secondly, he had no blocking. David Patten had yet another nice kick return.
I’m afraid the Giants special teams won’t improve until MacDuff is fired. The Giants could also use some more headhunters personnel-wise. Superbowl-caliber teams rarely have bad special teams.